It's not too late & you are not too old.
How many times have I heard from people in my personal circle and clients who have come to me and say..
”It’s too late to change, I am too old!
Often times we attribute age to be a factor in our lives changing and our health changing. We hear it from everywhere, Including sometimes from our primary care providers, the media, our friends and society.
When people ask me who are your teachers?
Who taught you everything that you know?
I always answer.. "my clients, in particular the elderly".
When they share their pain story with me, everything that they had to overcome and how they managed to do it; they are like “gold nuggets of wisdom”.
Many of them thought me by the transmission of their experiences and I have received many “gifts” through that kind of learning. Like a Master transmitting to his student by their sharing of presence, repetition and wisdom shared that can only come through experience. Many of them went on a healing journey to recover from physical traumas, emotional traumas and Illnesses created out of sheer will and resilience to initially survive, to manage and then to heal.
Some of them can be therapists themselves as they’ve learned so much, they just don’t have the diplomas on the wall to show it.
Some actually choose to become therapists to help themselves heal and to share their journey with others. They conclusively show/ed me that it is never too late and it is never too late!
At times even when I myself doubt at times, I have so many references to show me what is possible. What is possible with faith, hope, connections and strong will.
I wanted to share some examples of real cases. One of a complex chronic pain patient and the other a woman with an open sore that was caused by extreme lymphedema.
The man 83 years old came in recently with a complex chronic pain that started from a work injury he had in the late 1970’s on his right shoulder, neck and arm. He had metal bar fall on him at work and caused severe damage.
When assessing the area I saw and felt:
- a noticeable lump the size of a fist created by the chronic state of the bodymind and connective tissue damage..
- Pain radiating from mid upper back towards the occipital ridge
- Pain in shoulder joint where Range of Motion was affected
- Pain in elbow and wrist
- pain in left neck and restriction in motion where metal bar hit him
- Severe ADHD
- Severe frostbite trauma to feet and most toes were amputated.
- Childhood trauma
- Concave sternum bone since birth
He handed me a 10 page report by his medical doctor that was not so flattering and in my opinion demeaning .
Many of the pain symptoms have been there since that traumatic accident in the late 70’s . I have been working with this patient now for 4.5 weeks and the:
- lump disappeared,
- his shoulder pain disappeared with R.O.M increased dramatically.
- His nerve upper back pain disappeared
- His wrist & elbow pain is down significantly
- His tissues health improved
- He is like neurotic in his mannerisms
- He is more confident
His feedback "I can’t believe how much as changed in such a short amount of time as he tried everything under the moon and sky".
Has we continued our weekly session , he has shown tremendous wisdom, sense of humour and demonstrated an incredible resilience (which he calls stubbornness).
Second example – 85 year old woman with severe lymphedema and cellulitis (oozing open sore) to the point that she could not walk very much due to swelling in legs and feet.The skin was so stretched the body could not have enough time to heal the open sore.
When hearing her pain story, I learned that ever since her childhood , she always had to take care of others and be responsible for others health and wellbeing.
She had mixed feelings about that role as it was her joy and agony. She kept on saying.. "What can I do I will have to live like this, It is too late I am too old."
I said to her don’t worry we can heal this but she has to be patient, to listen and follow up on a protocol I created for her as home care in between sessions.
In a matter of weeks her open sore completely healed, in 2 months her skin completely regenerated in 3 months swelling was coming down to the point that she can start walking and in 5 months she could walk over 15 blocks back and forth.
We started to joke together, especially when we improved her leg raises and the range of motion. I would say..
"You see it’s never too late right?
She would reply " It is never too late!"- I can still hear her heavy Italian accent in my head.
These were just two examples and I have more then hundreds that I can share, enough to one day write a book about it.
My message to you is..
If you are dealing with a chronic pain and you start to believe that it is too late, you are too old, that could be your reality. But at the same time there is hope and a way to help you change that state that only keeps your body and mind a prisoner.
What do you have to loose, try and give it everything you might be surprised and amazed.
